Breakdown of Zij passen niet bij elkaar en daarom wijzen ze elkaar af.
en
and
niet
not
zij
they
passen
to fit / to match / go with
bij
at / near / by
ze
they; she (unstressed form of zij) / them (object)
elkaar
each other
daarom
therefore
afwijzen
to reject
Questions & Answers about Zij passen niet bij elkaar en daarom wijzen ze elkaar af.
Why do we say bij elkaar in the first part of the sentence?
The Dutch verb for "to suit" or "to match" is passen bij. When you want to say two people or things suit each other, you just put the preposition bij directly in front of the reciprocal pronoun elkaar.
Why is there no preposition before elkaar in the second half?
In the first half, elkaar was tied to a preposition (bij elkaar). However, in the second half, elkaar acts as the direct object of the verb afwijzen (to reject). Since they are rejecting each other, no preposition is needed, just like in English.
Why does the second clause say wijzen ze instead of ze wijzen?
The word daarom (therefore) takes the first position in that second clause. Because Dutch main clauses strictly follow the "verb-second" rule, the verb wijzen must come immediately after daarom, which pushes the subject ze behind the verb.
Why is the word af sitting at the very end of the sentence?
It is the separable prefix of the verb afwijzen (to reject). In a present tense main clause like this one, the core verb (wijzen) takes the second position, and its prefix (af) gets kicked all the way to the end of the clause.
Learn Zij passen niet bij elkaar en daarom wijzen ze elkaar af and more in Dutch
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free